| Powering Japan Meeting the summer peak
JERA looks to fossil fuels, including bringing elderly mothballed LNG units back on line, plus rapid completion of a new coal fired power station and a combined cycle plant
Above: Anegasaki site
Based on this summer’s expected very tight supply–demand outlook, JERA drew up measures to deal with the peak load season (July–September 2022) and has responded to a request from the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) to “consider and take all measures to stabilise electricity supply– demand.”
JERA, the Tepco/Chubu Electric 50:50 joint venture, which provides about 30% of Japan’s electricity, says it is has taken the following steps
to secure kW (power generation capacity): ● It has avoided, wherever possible, scheduling thermal power plant repairs and inspections over the summer.
● It has moved forward with preparations to resume operation of two LNG fuelled steam power plants, Anegasaki unit 5 (Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture), 600 MW, and Chita unit 5 (Chita, Aichi Prefecture), 700 MW. They started up in April 1977 and March 1978, respectively, and have both been in long-term planned shutdown since Spring 2022. These two units were offered by JERA as successful bidder in the public auction for additional power supply capacity conducted by Japan’s transmission and distribution companies
(excluding Hokkaido and Okinawa) to address supply–demand concerns this summer.
● It is also “working to secure summer power supply capacity by proceeding steadily with work on thermal power plants currently under construction.” In August, JERA planned to start commercial operation of Taketoyo unit 5 (Taketoyo, Aichi Prefecture), a new 1070 MW coal fired plant, which started trial operation in January 2022. It also hoped to start supplying electricity to the grid from Anegasaki new unit 1, a 650 MW LNG fuelled combined cycle unit (one of three new CCGT units under construction at the Anegasaki site) due to enter the commissioning phase in August 2022 (with commercial operation scheduled for February 2023).
● It is working to mitigate the risk of power plant generation outages through “soundness checks and targeted patrols of boilers and other priority equipment.”
As well as generating capacity, JERA says it is also taking steps to “secure kWh” (sufficient fuel and quantity of output). Having successfully bid to supply 800 GWh in the public auction of additional electricity supply volume conducted by the general electricity transmission and
Above: Chita site
distribution companies (excluding Okinawa) as a measure to address summer supply-demand, JERA says it is moving forward with preparations to supply electricity through the electricity market.
JERA notes that the energy situation is challenging due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and remains highly unpredictable, with increased energy procurement competition, as countries seek independence from Russian supplies, and rising prices for LNG and other fuels.
Under these circumstances, JERA says it has responded promptly and has been flexible in procuring a stable supply of fuel through its subsidiary JERA Global Markets (a joint venture between JERA (majority shareholder) and EDF Trading and is acting in accordance with Japanese government measures aimed at securing a stable fuel supply.
Japanese kW and kWh auctions aimed to secure additional generating capacity of 1.2 GW and electricity supply volume of 1 TWh for the period 1 July to 31 August.
JERA is one of the world’s largest buyers of LNG and looking towards 2025, it says its focus is primarily on two areas: large-scale renewable energy centred on offshore wind; and “LNG value chains.”
Above: Taketoyo 5
Earlier this year, Venture Global LNG and JERA Global Markets announced the successful loading and departure of the first cargo of LNG produced at the Calcasieu Pass LNG facility in Cameron, LA, USA. The LNG was loaded on the Yiannis, chartered by JERA Global Markets. Calcasieu Pass holds the global record for the fastest large-scale greenfield LNG facility build, moving from FID to LNG production in just 29 months. It is also one of the first greenfield LNG export projects to be constructed in the USA.
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